In the 1970s, my father purchased limited edition wood block prints from the Canadian artist Woldemar Neufeld. They have been a treasured part of our family for decades.
Woldemar Neufeld (1909-2002) was a Russian-born artist who lived a life that was constantly on the move, and his art beautifully reflects that journey. His story is one of a long artistic career shaped by history and a search for a place to call home.
Born in a Mennonite community in Russia, Neufeld's early life was marked by the turmoil of the Russian Revolution, which tragically led to the execution of his father. This traumatic experience forced his family to flee, first to Germany and then to Canada in the 1920s. Despite the hardship, his passion for art was already clear, and he quickly sought out opportunities to study.
He found his footing in Canada, where he attended school and even helped found an art society. His early work often captured the landscapes and urban life around him. But Neufeld's journey continued, and he eventually moved to the United States to study at the Cleveland Institute of Art.
In the mid-1940s, he settled in New York City, where he became so well-known for his paintings of the waterfront that he was nicknamed the "artist laureate of the East River." He loved capturing the bustling energy of tugboats, bridges, and the city's skyline. While he eventually moved his family to New Milford, Connecticut, where he established a successful studio and gallery, he maintained his New York studio for decades. He was a very prolific artist, using various mediums like oil, watercolor, and especially linocuts and woodblock prints.
Neufeld's art is often described as a blend of realism and a quiet, poetic emotion. He had a way of capturing not just what a place looked like, but what it felt like to be there. He was particularly known for his landscapes of Connecticut and New England, painting the hills, farms, and bridges with a certain calm, reflective quality. His work is cherished today in both private and public collections, a lasting testament to a life spent documenting the world around him with great care and elegance.